Russia is continuing to show no sign of yielding to Western pressure to hasten its withdrawal from Georgia. Germany, Russia’s largest trading partner, has become the latest major power to express impatience over the pace of the pull-out – which is turning into scepticism over Moscow’s intentions.

We will respond, and it won’t just be a diplomatic protest. That is the warning from Russia after the US and Poland signed an agreement on the controversial American missile defence shield.

Russia is under increasing Western pressure to meet its own Friday deadline to pull its troops out of Georgia. However, those on the ground say there is little evidence of any large-scale military withdrawal.

TEHRAN (FNA)- Iran and Turkey are to move forward with negotiations on a major agreement on the transport of natural gas, following Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s visit to Istanbul last week.

TEHRAN (FNA)- Iran cut its crude sales to North Asia by 26 percent compared with the first quarter, and 21 percent versus a year ago.

TEHRAN (FNA)- India’s Mangalore Refineries and Petrochemicals Ltd will sell an extra 210,000 tons of diesel by December to Iran, which is boosting imports ahead of heavy refinery maintenance works this year, its managing director said on Tuesday.

TEHRAN (FNA)- Iran has negotiated around $4.5 billion in joint ventures in the petrochemical and energy sector during the past three years, an oil industry official said.

TEHRAN (FNA)- Keyhan manager Hossein Shariatmadari examined the Russian-Georgian conflict in an editorial in the Persian daily headlined One piece of news and a lesson to learn.

TEHRAN (FNA)- Iran’s Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) aircraft, displayed earlier this year, is named after a mythical Iranian bird, Simorgh.

MOSCOW (Reuters) – Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said on Wednesday he will use a visit to Russia to expand military ties with Moscow, whose arms sales to the Middle Eastern state have angered Israel and the United States.